“It’s not like I want to win a Marathon. I just want to complete it”, he added apologetically looking at the bewildered expression on my face. “Sure!! Just complete it! Do you know how long you need to run to complete a Marathon? It is 26.2miles. 42.1km!!” I sneered!

“Give me three reasons why I can not do it”, his voice becoming defiant. I rolled my eyes and said, “Three reasons!!? I can give you 26.2 reasons or may be even 42.1 reasons!” “No. Three would be fine and I will not pursue it if I can not prove you wrong on those points”, he challenged.

“Well reason number one. You hated running. You hated so much as jogging just a couple of years ago.” I served him an ace and waited with my hands on my hips. “I hated it because, I thought I could not do it. Then I thought I could not do a lot of things. I proved myself wrong by just trying. Besides, it helped me lose 35 pounds and become fitter. So, why should I hate it anymore?” The return of service surprised me.

“Okay, reason number two. You never ran more than 10k. That too, you just managed it a couple of times with lots of difficulty. You are a 5k jogger at best. Do you think running a Marathon would be a cake walk?”. “I completely agree with you. I am not saying it is easy or that I will run a Marathon tomorrow. I will start training for it. Riding a 100km or more on my bike seemed impossible when I began cycling. Then I am able to do it multiple times because I worked at it persistently and slowly improved.” He answered confidently.

I began searching for more reasons and said, “Don’t be a show off dude!! It’s not like you are super fast or super good at it either. Besides, cycling is easy dude!! It doesn’t put much pressure on your knees. Running is a different ball game. It puts a lot of pressure on your joints. There are a lot of runners who wreak their bodies every year.” “I know that it is much difficult than cycling. I am willing to work at it. Despite being difficult, I think it is a simple sport. If I get my basics right I will be alright. Besides there are so many people out there who are able to do it. Why can’t I? I will do it.” He sounded resolute.

I gave up trying to make him give up. “Let him try. There is no harm trying,” I told myself. It is his birthday today and I bought him a gift which he says is the best he received till date from me.